Standing Athwart History Yelling "Stop!"

I'm getting to the point where I like trouble, disasters, things going wrong. Because, apparently, something horrible happening seems to be the only way that people start to focus on standing up for the right thing.

Look at Haiti. Did the world really care about Haiti before the earthquake? I mean really, really care? Naw. They knew about Haiti's problems. They knew all about how the French screwed them over as slaves and then the French wrongly threw them into debt - when all the Haitians wanted was their freedom from the French - but come on, what were "sophisticated" people saying before the earthquake?

You have GOT to go to Paris!

Hell, they're still saying it now,...

O.J. Simpson was a big star before the murders. Sure, the cops were always going out to his mansion because he beat the crap out of his wife on a regular basis. But he'd autograph a tiny football for them, tell them a story about the latest other stunning blonde he slept with last night (nudge, nudge, wink, wink) and then nobody cared about Nicole Brown Simpson over there crying in the corner - especially not the public.

That's modern touchy-feely NewAge "society" for you.

So tragedy is starting to strike me as useful. I can now open the paper (or, actually, my laptop) and look forward to reading about shootings, financial collapses, dishonest politicians, quacks, and assorted "spiritual" types with a smile, knowing the actions of such human waste are the only way the rest of you will ever learn anything.

I was marveling today at this quote from Glenn Reynolds, on the journalists in the White House press pool:

"They expected to be lied to. They just expected the lies to be . . . better."

Just think about that statement for a second. Professor Reynolds expected there would be lying. The journalists elected "the Messiah" & Co. to lie to them. (It's the quality of his lies that offends them now.) There isn't even the implication that there should be a shred of truth that exists in our public lives. And as long as all these good Christians can hide behind that old trope about everybody being a sinner, well, you're not going to get much cooperation regarding anyone's private life either.

So why's everyone on John Edwards' case again?

So yea, I think it's about time for the assassin's bullet, the mad bomber, the crazed gunman, or the terrorist-on-a-rampage to make his regularly scheduled appointment. Take out somebody important - or a bunch of nobodies - just to get this solipsistic generation's attention long enough that their maniacal Merry-Go-Round can finally halt for a little while, before everyone promptly forgets (or, more likely, glosses over) what just happened, and decides,...you know what? they really liked that insane music playing after all,...so crank that puppy back up as soon as possible - and LOUD.

Because that's the signal it's y'all's turn to start smiling again, and you don't have to worry because everything's going back to just the way you like it,...

Hat Tip: Althouse